>>27681958I'll tell you this - I can hit bottlecap-sized targets at 50 yards with either of my guns.
As for practice, there is one big hump you have to get over though, when using spring piston rifles.
And that's the fact, that springers recoil. And unlike firearms, they recoil in both directions - back and forward. So, contrary to shooting firearms, to be accurate with spring piston rifles, your hold needs to be as delicate as possible, to let the recoil dissipate naturally, without screwing up your shots.
It can also wreck havoc on scopes, especially in the case of lower-end springers, since there's plenty of vibration. Higher end spring pistons, with good, one-piece mounts will behave, but I still wouldn't put high end scopes on them.
pcp rifles, on the other hand, have virtually zero recoil, so you can use any kind of scope, and they are less hold-sensitive. Bit more cumbersome logistic-wise though, since you need a secondary tank/pump to keep them running, recharging every 70 or 80 shots (or 50 if you are ocd about keeping a lower fps spread).
As for deadliness - you can hunt with either .177 or .22. It's not so much the caliber, as it is the energy.
Typically, the legal limit for air rifles, before they are considered firearms (FAC) is 12 foot pounds. One foot pound being the energy needed to move one pound, one foot. 12 fpe translates to 16.3 Joules IIRC. In terms of velocity, the "magic number" is 671 feet per second. At that velocity, the pellet's energy in foot pounds is equal to it's mass in grains.
That said, a typical .22 pellet is 15 grains and change (there are both heavier, and lighter ones. A middle weight .177 pellet is in the 8 grain range (I use 8.44 and 9.57 grain pellets).
What this means, is that .177 pellets get higher muzzle velocities, translating into flatter trajectory, making them better for target shooting (less drop), while .22 pellets, being heavier, are better at carrying energy downrange.
to be continued...
